New ink fragrance in old times

"Second aunt, let's go plant garlic now while it's still early and cooler," Xing'er suggested.

"Okay, okay, let's go now." Han responded with a smile.

So, Han, Xing'er, Lin Mo, and Lin Sizhe took hoes, carried baskets full of garlic cloves, slowly opened the quaint door in the backyard, and set out for the vegetable garden.

After exiting the back door and walking along a path slightly moistened by the morning dew, less than two hundred meters away, a vegetable garden carefully surrounded by a bamboo fence came into view.

The edge of the vegetable garden is connected to a gently descending slope, and the slope and the vegetable garden together are more than one acre wide.

As you walk into the vegetable garden, a fresh scent of earth hits your nose, which makes you feel refreshed.

The sunlight had completely dispelled the morning mist, casting a golden glow on the plowed ground in the vegetable garden.

The soil appears soft and fertile under the morning light, as if it is longing for the arrival of new life.

"Look, this is our family's vegetable garden. Today we are going to plant these garlic cloves. I hope they grow up quickly." Han stopped and looked around the land, her eyes full of anticipation.

Upon hearing this, Xing'er, Lin Mo and Lin Sizhe all nodded.

So, the four of them began to work together. After Han planned the planting locations, Xing'er immediately picked up a hoe and began digging neatly arranged holes.

Her movements were agile and powerful, and each hole was dug just right, neither too deep to damage the roots nor too shallow to affect the growth of the garlic sprouts.

Lin Mo and Lin Sizhe were responsible for placing the garlic cloves precisely into the holes dug by Xing'er.

Cover the apricots with soil again.

Han, carrying a wooden bucket, walked steadily back and forth between the vegetable patch and the dry toilet in the Lin family's backyard, skillfully scooping fermented manure into the bucket.

Although this manure water seems simple, it is actually a valuable fertilizer that is indispensable for the growth of crops and contains rich nutrients.

Han carried the heavy bucket of manure and walked carefully, afraid to spill a drop of the precious manure. She came to the place where she had just planted the garlic cloves and began to water them one by one.

Sweat slid down their cheeks and dripped onto this land full of hope, but they did not feel tired at all.

The sun hung in the blue sky like a fireball, mercilessly pouring out its scorching rays and baking the earth.

Although Han, Xing'er, Lin Mo and Lin Sizhe had put on large straw hats to block the raging sun, their cheeks were still sunburned red, as if they had been painted with two layers of natural rouge.

Sweat slid down their foreheads, dripped onto the dry ground, and evaporated without a trace in an instant.

Han stopped what she was doing and gently wiped the sweat off her face with her sleeve. She looked at Xing'er, her eyes full of care and concern. "Xing'er, the sun is really too hot. Let's go back and cook. There's not much garlic left. Let's save the rest for this afternoon and plant them together in the backyard."

Hearing this, Xing'er nodded vigorously, her voice clear and firm: "Okay, second aunt, I'll listen to you, we'll go back now." As she spoke, she picked up the hoe steadily and effortlessly carried the few remaining garlic heads on her back. Every movement seemed so skillful yet still showed the agility and lightness of a young girl.

Seeing this, Lin Mo and Lin Sizhe quickly put down their tools and followed Xing'er closely.

Lin Mo had a gentle smile on his face and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve from time to time; while Lin Sizhe seemed a little anxious. He stepped forward quickly and wanted to help Xing'er share some of the weight, but Xing'er refused with a smile, saying that she could do it herself.

Han looked at this scene, a warm feeling welling up in her heart, and a gentle smile involuntarily curled up at the corner of her mouth. She gently patted the dust off her body, picked up the wooden bucket beside her, and walked behind.

In this way, the four of them formed a warm and strong landscape under the scorching sun, slowly moving towards home.

When they returned home, a long-lost cool breeze instantly hit them, dispelling their fatigue and heat.

Han rested for a while, then walked into the kitchen first and started to get busy.

While sorting out the ingredients, she said to the people who had returned to unload the corn, "We're starting to make lunch. Let's have everyone come back later to eat. The meal will be ready soon."

Han quickly lit a fire, the flames dancing and illuminating her focused face.

Xing'er was busy on the side, scooping cool well water from the water tank to prepare the ingredients for cooking.

After a while, an enticing aroma filled the kitchen, which was the unique mellowness of corn rice and the freshness of garlic cucumber.

The aroma of food filled the entire courtyard, making people salivate.

Not long after, other members of the Lin family returned home one after another, carrying heavy baskets on their backs.

"You're back! Wash your hands and have dinner!" Han said to everyone with a smile while standing in the kitchen.

Lin Mo sat at the table, looking at the bowl full of corn rice, his eyes flashing with surprise.

Although there wasn't much rice, every grain was soaked in the broth, making it particularly tempting. He picked up his chopsticks, gently picked up a mouthful, and put it into his mouth. In that instant, all his fatigue and hunger seemed to be dissolved by this simple meal.

"It smells so good!" Lin Mo's voice was filled with a hint of excitement that was hard to conceal. His eyes unconsciously reddened slightly, and the warmth flowing in his heart seemed to dispel the fatigue and hardship of the past few days. This was the only dry meal Lin Mo had eaten in the past few days, the only decent meal he had eaten.

He gently picked up a piece of cucumber with the chopsticks in his hand and put it into his mouth. The familiar yet unfamiliar taste instantly bloomed on his taste buds, awakening the deepest memories and emotions in his heart.

In the past few days, Lin Mo's life seemed to have undergone an earth-shaking change.

The meals that he once considered ordinary and even disdained have now become the delicacies he dreams of. Looking back on his past, he felt that he had never appreciated the good things he had.

Although today's lunch was simple and plain, it made Lin Mo feel unprecedented satisfaction and happiness.

The afternoon sun scorched the earth like flames, and even the air was filled with a stuffy atmosphere.

"The sun is so scorching today!" Old Mrs. Lin sighed as she wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve.

After the Lin family finished their simple but extremely satisfying lunch, they did not rush to work in the fields as usual.

Instead, they decided to use this rare afternoon time to perform a necessary chore - dealing with the mountain of corn in the yard.

In the yard, golden corn piled up into a small hill, which was the result of the Lin family's hard work.

Everyone sat together, busy with their hands, peeling off the corn husks layer by layer, leaving the plump corn and a few tender green leaves inside.

As time went by, the sun did not seem to show any signs of weakening, but the Lin family was in an unusually calm mood.

They were shelling corn and chatting about family matters, with occasional bursts of laughter breaking the tranquility of the afternoon.